The Golden Years: Medievalism in A Knight's Tale

Original Theater Poster

    The 2001 movie A Knight's Tale written, directed, and produced by Brian Helgeland is considered an action medieval comedy. The film centers around a peasant who dreams of becoming a famous knight. The movie is set in the 14th century, a time typically considered near the end of the Medieval period. Aside from being set in Medieval times and having knights, sword fights, and royalty the movie has some Medieval specific genre examples and other hints of medieval literature.

Medieval Epic Representaion

    Though this story is considered more of a comedy than an action movie, A Knight's Tale is a great modern representation of what a Medieval epic was, and the key elements and themes that often showed up. Medieval epics were long narrative poems disseminated in spoken or written formats. The genre as a whole dealt with one hero's journey involving battles or unbelievable feats (Yoshisda). During the hero's journey, the battles they face create some sort of physical or mental transformation (Needham). 

    In A Knight's Tale, the main character William Thatcher completes the hero's journey and not only transforms himself, but also his fate. From the beginning of the movie, William's main goal from childhood is to become a knight. However because he has no royal blood, he could not become a knight. His father sends him away to to become a squire to a knight, the closest he could get to being a knight, to try and "change his stars." Years later, after his master dies, he trains to take his spot in a jousting and sword-fighting tournament. By faking his lineage he gets into the tournament and starts to gain notoriety. Overcoming his lineage is one battle on his journey William faces. With more and more wins under his belt, William starts to create enemies. One in particular is Sir Adimar, who becomes his romantic and tournament rival. Adimar finds out William has been lying and has him arrested. Losing credibility and being imprisoned is the second battle he must face. In the end, Prince Edward proves that William is of royal blood through distant relations. This gets William out of jail, allows him to compete in the final tournament, best Adimar, and in the end "change his stars." Through the different battles William went through he not only changed as a person morally, but also ended up changing his fate as a whole. This is exactly what a hero's journey from a Medieval epic exemplifies. Below is a video from the movie showing the completion of William's journey.

Video 1, Jousting end scene

Chivalry and Courtly Love

    A major subplot of the movie is William's romance with the main female character Jocelyn. Throughout the movie, some scenes directly represent courtly love and chivalry that were staples of Medieval literature and medieval romance. While the movie itself does not directly follow all 31 rules of courtly love and the Code of Chivalry, it does show certain rules or patterns that one follows to show their love (Bell Shakespeare). Some of these include the man existing to serve their love, a complex combination of social, romantic religious, and philosophical factors (Britannica). The love between William and Joclyn is also a reference to a story between Lancelot and Guinevere (McAdams). 

    Several scenes stand out in A Knight's Tale that highlight the courtly love between William and Jocelyn. One of the main scenes that shows this is when William is in a jousting tournament. After a fight, Jocyln asks him to lose the tournament to prove his love to her. He reluctantly does this to show that he truly loves her. After seeing him lose and go through all that pain to prove he loves her, she then asks him to win the tournament to prove that he loves her (see video two). 

Video 2, William shows his love

    Another scene that shows their courtly love and chivalry is when William asks for help from his friends to write a love letter to Joclyn, and how she responds to it. He uses poetic words and stories of friend's personal love lives to create a letter that brings her to tears. She responds by giving him a garment for him to wear during tournaments and a kiss given to him by his friend Wash. By dedicating their love for each other through words and tokens they discreetly respectfully show their affections. They also do not share any physical affection with each other showing the pioty and courtly gestures between each other. One final scene that shows their courtly love and demonstrates chivalry between the two of them is the scene where William is attending a gathering for the tournament participants. Joclyn asks to match William to show, and she saves William from embarrassment in front of the court when he performs a dance from the women's role (see video 3). Matching shows they respectfully have feelings for each other and Jocelyn saving William from embarrassment shows chivalry and love in a touch political and societal scenario.

Video 3, William and Jocyln dance

Other Medieval References

    There are several specific Medieval literature references. One of the key Medievalism points in this film is bloodlines and royal blood. William's lack of royal blood, until it is revealed at the end of the movie, is the driving force behind the plot and his hero's journey. Bloodlines were a defining part of Medieval society. It separated the royalty and upper class from the peasantry.  Another key Medievalism element apparent in the film is the historical references the film alludes to. One of the main characters in the film is Geoffry Chaucer. Chaucer is considered one of the founders of English literature. Having him as a main character is important for its medieval representation. It also gives a subtle nod to the film's name and inspiration. The film itself is loosely based on Chaucer's story "The Knights Tale" from The Canterbury Tales. A Knight's Tale also has a scene that references another story from The Canterbury Tales. The character Chaucer gets in trouble for gambling with a pardoner and says he will one day "destroy him with words." This references the story "The Pardoner's Tale" from The Canterbury Tales. Another historical reference the movie makes is through another character. This is Prince Edward, also known as Edward the Black Prince (McAdams). Prince Edward was a significant figure in the Hundred Years War, considered a model for chivalry, and known as one of the greatest knights of his time (Wagner 116). These elements of significant characters and societal ideals add to the medievalism ever-present in A Knight's Tale.

Work Cited:

A Knight's Tale. Directed by Brian Helgeland, performances by Heath Ledger, Shannyn Sossamon, Paul Bettany, and Rufus Sewell, Columbia Pictures, 2001.

Bell Shakespeare. “Courtly Love.” Bell Shakespeare, bellshakespeare.com.au/courtly-love#:~:text=Courtly%20Love%20followed%20strict%20rules,worn%20during%20a%20medieval%20tournament. 

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "chivalry". Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 Nov. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/topic/chivalry.  

McAdams, Eric. “20 Crazy Behind-the-Scenes Details about a Knight’s Tale.” ScreenRant, 27 July 2018, screenrant.com/details-knights-tale-behind-the-scenes/.

Needham, Jonathan. “And a Hero Will Save Us; What Do Heroes from Ancient and Medieval Epics Teach Us in the 21st Century?”. Athens Institute for Education and Research, 16, April. 2018, Athens Journal of Humanities & Arts, vol. 5, iss. 2, pp 207-224

Video 1: "A Knight's Tale | William's Return For The Final Match (ft. Heath Ledger) | Cinema Quest" Youtube, uploaded by Cinema Quest, July 20, 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pnzf1gqIszA.

Video 2: "A Knight's Tale | William Proves His Love" Youtube, uploaded by Now Playing, October 24, 2021, www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxotZgecjdc.

Video 3: "A Knight's Tale: A Dance From Gelderland Scene (Heath Ledger)." Youtube, uploaded by Scene City, February 1, 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=LFh7L0F_xVU.

Wagner, J. (2006), Encyclopedia of the Hundred Years War (PDF), Westport: Greenwood Press, ISBN 978-0-313-32736-0, archived from the original (PDF) on 16 July 2018

Yoshida, Atsuhiko. "Epic." Encyclopedia Britannica, 11 Sep. 2024, britannica.com/art/epic.

Medievalism in Dragon Age: Origins

Dragon Age: Origins' cover art. (4)

Dragon Age: Origins is a single-player, high fantasy RPG developed and released by Bioware in 2009. The entire Dragon Age series, in which there are now four games, is made up of complex roleplaying and worldbuilding, dark-ish fantasy and horror elements, and charmingly cringy silliness, all wrapped up in a clearly medieval Europe-inspired aesthetic, rich with castles, chevaliers and templars, lady priests and mystics, political intrigue, Middle English romance-like hero's journeys, and, yes, the occasional dragon.

The player takes on the role of a customizable character called "the Warden" whose job is to save Ferelden--essentially, fantasy Britain, a kingdom run by English-accented noblemen committing Macbeth-esque acts of betrayal and stewing in ages-old rivalries with fantasy France--from the Blight. The Blight is, explained simply, the consequences of the Dragon Age equivalent of the Fall of Man in the form of zombie hordes. When I say "the Dragon Age equivalent of the Fall of Man," I mean that the event that began the Blight long ago is rather similar thematically to the story of Adam and Eve eating from the Tree of Knowledge. Thedas, the world in which Dragon Age takes place, is ruled by a religion that is, for all intents and purposes, fantasy Catholicism, much like the way real-life medieval Europe was entirely under the control of the Church (which, in Dragon Age, is called the Chantry).

Origins map of Ferelden. (3)

The medievalism of Origins and the series as a whole is a foundational facet of the games, and I could probably make several blog posts discussing it all, but to narrow down a very lore-heavy, several-game-long experience into one brief-ish post, I'll be focusing in on one game--Origins--and one particular quest within it that relates to the topic of my Medieval World blog post: holy relics.

The Urn of Sacred Ashes

"The Urn of Sacred Ashes" is a main quest wherein the Warden and their companions go searching for the titular Urn, a relic which, according to legend, contains the ashes of the prophet Andraste. Andraste is basically Thedas' Jesus if Jesus was more of a Joan of Arc/Virgin Mary figure, being the Bride of the Maker rather than the Son of God. Much like Joan of Arc and other female mystics of the medieval period, Andraste claimed to receive visions from God/the Maker; her visions then became the foundation of Andrastianism, and she was eventually betrayed by her mortal husband (Joseph and Judas rolled up into one) and burned at the stake by the Tevinter Imperium (the Roman Empire if it never fell and all the senators were mages).

The Warden standing before a statue and the Urn of Andraste during "The Urn of Sacred Ashes" quest. (1)

The same way that in medieval Europe, relics from the Crucifixion and from the bodies/belongings of Catholic religious figures were revered and sought-after, remnants of Andraste's life and death are considered important to Andrastians in Thedas. Upon stopping by a local Chantry along their travels, the Warden meets a templar knight who gives them a quest to go searching for, naturally, the most coveted relic of all: the supposed remains of Andraste's body. There's been a renewed fervor in the search for Andraste's ashes by the time the Warden hears of it, since the Arl of a major Fereldan city has fallen to a mysterious illness and requires miraculous healing, which legend claims that Andraste's ashes can provide. As I discussed in my first blog post, this same sort of belief existed about relics of real-life holy figures: that, by coming into contact with the belongings or body parts of holy figures, one could be healed.

The questline leads the Warden to the remote village of Haven, the location of the Urn that is guarded by cultists. After quite a lot of fighting with the hostile cultists and slaying the cultists' pet dragon, the Warden unlocks a new quest: "A Test of Faith," wherein, guided by a spirit named the Guardian Knight, they and their companions go through a sort of sifting of their souls called The Gauntlet to determine their worthiness to obtain a pinch of Andraste's ashes. Tests of characters as parts of quests are rather common in Middle English romances, which might have been the idea that the writers of Origins pulled from for this quest (and which makes the search for the Urn sort of Grail Quest-like, but that's a discussion for a different prompt). What all is said and done, the Warden is judged worthy, the Arl is healed by the ashes, and in the third game of the series, Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014), Haven becomes a popular site for Andrastian pilgrimages, a practice that was also common during the Middle Ages at sites of holy relics.

The Village and Chantry of Haven in Dragon Age: Inquisition. (2)

Works Cited

BWUser. "Approaching the Urn of Sacred Ashes." Nexus Mods, 13 Apr 2014, https://www.nexusmods.com/dragonage/images/43202. (1)

"Haven Chantry." Dragon Age Wiki, https://dragonage.fandom.com/wiki/Haven_Chantry?file=Haven_%28Inquisition%292.png. (2)

Melzer, Jenny. "Dragon Age: The History of Ferelden Explored." CBR, 16 Oct 2016, https://www.cbr.com/dragon-age-ferelden-history-explored/. (3)

MoonDoggie82. "Dragon Age: Origins Review." The One Gaming Nation, 24 Mar 2010, https://t1gn.com/dragon-age-origins-review/. (4)

One Post to Rule them All, Medievalism in LOTR

 The Lord of the Rings books by J.R.R. Tolkien, written through 1954-1955 are a continuous tale set within Middle Earth. Sporting a film series of the same name by Peter Jackson from 2001-2003, the series has become a classic to an incredibly diverse fan base. Both on the screen and on the page, medievalism can be seen all throughout this influential tale of fantasy.

The King and the Sword

 One of the main characters through the series is Aragorn, son of Arathorn. Alongside his fellow characters on a quest to stop the destruction of a dark lord, he is shown to be more than he says he is. In medievalism, some characters are seen to be connected to royalty through their deeds, stature, and strength. Aragorn is shown to be a respectful companion, a faithful lover, and the lost king of the kingdom of Gondor. In the first set of the series, The Fellowship of the Ring, he is recognized as king by his companion Boromir in his final moments, and Aragorn swears to protect their people and not see Gondor fall. In the final set of the series, The Return of the King, when all hope is seemingly lost in fighting to protect his people, Aragorn is given a reforged sword meant to symbolize his status as the lost king, much like King Arthur, and does not become crowned until the final fight for Middle Earth has been won.

Aragorn proving his lineage with his sword to the Oathbreakers.

Otherworldly Settings

 Set on a quest to destroy the one ring, the fellowship travels all across Middle Earth in their efforts. However, one of their visits mirrors the experience of entering otherworlds in medieval literature. Entering an elven forest, the characters are blindfolded and guided into the land of Lothlorien. Much like in medieval literature, the characters are unaware of how precisely they enter this location, though they are guided while blind. Another example is when the two hobbits Merry and Pippin are captured and escape into Fangorn forest. In there, the forest is described as dark, dense, and uneasy. To their luck, they meet a talking tree-like creature called Treebeard. In the medieval poem, The Dream of the Rood, the narrator of the poem is a tree, though in this case Treebeard is a mythical creature called an Ent who does indeed recite a poem to the hobbits about the history of the Ents.

Treebeard holding up Merry and Pippin, curious as to what they are.

Fantastical Beings

Gwaihir the Windlord: While not referenced by name in the films, Gwaihir is the ruler of the giant talking eagles in Middle Earth. In the book series, Gwaihir speaks with the character Gandalf, though this only ever happens when the two characters are absent from the main plot. It is an occurrence in medieval literature for some animals to be able to speak, or have other abnormal properties. There is also a tie into the trope of animals helping people on quests, as Gwaihir flies Gandalf to various locations, and helps in the final war of the last book.

Gwaihir and Gandalf coming to save Frodo and Sam at the end of the last film.

Shelob: One of the villains met on the final stretch of their journey, she is a giant carnivorous spider. Successfully driven off by the character Samwise, she is fearful of light and retreats back to Torech Ungol (evlish for The Spider's Den). In medieval texts, some giant animals did make appearances, or giants themselves. At the same time, many of these monsters can only be harmed by magical weapons like Grendel and his Mother in Beowulf, and Shelob was harmed by the magical sword Sting.

Work Cited

Robin, Susan. "Old English, Old Norse, Gothic: Sources of Inspiration and Creativity for J.R.R. Tolkien's The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings." Math & the Word / Zmogus Ir Zodis, vol. 17, no. 3, Sept. 2015, pp 66-76. Humanities Source https://doi.org/10.15823/zz.2015.12.

Medieval Costumes on World Tour!

    Many music artists take months to plan their tours and to plan their costuming with their designers. The designs of these costumes are planned mostly though a stylist, which connects with a multitude of designers that then create costumes that embody the artist and their tour (1). With that, costumes need to pop on stage so those with nosebleed seats can still see the artist.

    In medieval times, and in stories we have read, we have seen elements of knights and kings. We rarely talked about their fashion choices, because quite frankly, no one cared back then about what these people were wearing. In today's day-in-age, their fashion choices take a modern twist and celebrities look back on these times for inspiration.

Beyonce

(3)

    In May of 2023, Beyonce embarked on a 56 show world tour called the Renaissance tour after the album of the same name. Not only did this tour make history in 2023 by being the highest grossing world tour by a female artist pulling in $579 million, but the costuming is iconic (2). 

   Occasionally, her wardrobe takes a very modern twist on medievalism.
Working with designer Marine Serre, a silver body suit that looks quite knightley was created.

(4)

Lady Gaga

    This blog simply cannot go without the mentioning of costuming queen Lady Gaga. She has had some iconic moments in costuming, like her iconic meat dress at the 2010 MTV video music awards, to breathtaking costuming at her concerts (5). 

    Gaga embarked on her Born This Way ball tour in 2012 and ending in 2013. Working primarily with Giorgio Armani and Donatella Versace, Gaga created costumes that had elements of medievalism with their visual appeal and style. They had wide shoulders which can be noted as being kingly (or queenly) and specks of silver which can represent armor.

  

Works Cited

1. Hoo, Fawnia Soo. “The Big Business Behind Concert Costume Design.” TZR, https://www.thezoereport.com/fashion/concert-fashion#:~:text=An%20artist%2C%20most%20likely%20through,the%20performer's%20trademark%20sartorial%20persona.. 

2.  Brathwaite, Lester Fabian. “Break my soul, break these records: Beyoncé's Renaissance World Tour by the numbers.” Entertainment Weekly, https://ew.com/music/beyonce- renaissance-tour-by-the-numbers-records/. 

3. Mazur, Kevin. Beyonce Image, getty images.

4. Lady Gaga image, from https://ladygaga.fandom.com/wiki/The_Born_This_Way_Ball. 

5. “Meat Dress of Lady Gaga.” Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meat_ dress _of_Lady_Gaga#:~:text=On%20September%2012%2C%202010%2C%20American,top%20fashion%20statement%20of%202010.. 

    

How the Dark Souls Series Embodies Medievalism

         The Dark Souls series is a fantasy RPG series developed by FromSoftware and created by Hidetaka Miyazaki. The series features 3 installments of the most difficult challenges the person who has played them has had to endure. The series is well renowned among video game consumers and has even adapted its own subgenre of games known as "Soulslikes".

Cover of Dark Souls: Remastered (1)

Aesthetics and Architecture

        The land of Lordran, kingdom of Drangleic, and kingdom of Lothric (The settings of each game in order), are filled to the brim with medieval styled architecture. From the massive castles to run down villages and ruins that the character explores throughout their journey, there are no shortages of medieval styled design found within the land of Dark Souls.

    The ruined state of a lot of the areas found within Dark Souls represents wars, famine, and declining leadership found commonly withing the Middle Ages. The decline in the areas of Dark Souls represented the decline and abandonment found throughout Middle Age empires. The hollows (undead humans) show this with their moans and pain filled actions, due to the negligence from their lords.

Combat and Warfare

    The world of Dark Souls is full of combat where the player must strategically dodge opponents all while finding time to attack for themselves.

The chosen undead (you) facing off against Artorias (boss). (1)

    The weapons of Dark Souls represent the Middle Ages as well. The sword and shield were commonly used through the middle ages, but Dark Souls also features the use of bows, lances, spears, and many other weapons based around the Middle Ages. The armor also represents the look of the knight found within the medieval period.

Religion and Social Structure

        The people found within Dark Souls, like the citizens of the Middle Ages, worshipped Gods and Lords found throughout the lands. There are churches scattered around as well as priests to occupy said churches representing the abundance of religion found throughout medieval Europe. The Lords that are worshipped are known as the Lords of Cinder and they protect the sacred flame. The flame represents the Holy Grail and is the main purpose behind the journey of the chosen undead.

The Soul Of Cinder, the embodiment of the sacred flame. (1) 

        The social hierarchy found within Dark Souls is evident of the inspiration from the Middle ages, rulers, kings, and nobles live in the largest castles and cities all while their kingdoms are surrounded by famished and poor settlements full of farmers and beggars fueling the leaders while they have to live in awful conditions. 

Works Cited

(1) “DARK SOULS.” Bandai Namco Europe, en.bandainamcoent.eu/dark-souls.

 Medieval Literature: Frozen in Time 

Medieval Romance was a time in history when there were poems and stories written about knights who had been set out on quests, fairytale settings, elements of supernatural, chivalry and overall respect towards women. Medieval Romance was just a stepping stone to make modern-day stories and poems. This Oscar-winning movie, Frozen (2013) contains characteristics of this medieval world. 

Supernatural Elements: 

(1)

In Frozen (2013), Elsa is a princess who has supernatural powers, shooting icicles and snow out of her hands. Elsa was born with this power and the only way to control this is by having gloves on her hands to help conceal these powers. She goes throughout her life hiding these powers from all the outside world and has to learn to live with these differences. At the coronation ball, she has to give this speech and decides to take the gloves off. She made a sudden movement causing her to use these powers and causes a blizzard in Arendale, shutting down her city. These supernatural elements are often shown off in in these medieval pieces. In the Old Norse sagas, there are these characters that posses the abilities to control weather, including snow. 

Quests:

(2)

After Elsa causes this blizzard in Arendale, she decides to leave the city. Ana then sets out to go to the North Mountain to find Elsa. Halfway through her journey, she stops at a shop on the mountains where she meets Kristoff. Kristoff sees that Ana is alone and doesn't know these mountains so he agrees to go with her to find Elsa. As they go through this journey, they endure a few challenges by the time they find Elsa on the top of the mountain. In most medieval pieces there is a knight that goes on some sort of quest to find someone or something. They followed similar quests and faced hardships but they kept pushing through

 until they find their final goal. 

(3)

Chivalry: 

In most princess/Disney movies, there is this sense of chivalry. Kristoff follows many of these rules of chivalry especially respect towards women. At the beginning of the movie, Ana meets Hans and agrees to marry him, hours after meeting him. At the end of the movie, you see that Hans is not a good guy and does not follow these codes of chivalry. Kristoff shows his respect towards Ana and Elsa throughout the entire movie and even just respects for agreeing to go with Ana on this quest. He rushes Ana down the hill after she is struck with ice in the heart and takes her on a nice sleigh ride. Although Kristoff is not a knight, he follows these codes and is very similar to knights in medieval literature. Frozen helps bring back the type of romance that was showcased in medieval romances. 

Citations: 

(1) https://www.rotoscopers.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/elsa-frozen-trailer-elsa-ice-powers1.png

(2) "Frozen 3 on Elsa's Love, Ana-Kristoff Wedding, movie to have 'best storyline'. Devidiscourse News desk. May 20, 2020. https://www.devdiscourse.com/article/entertainment/1059859-frozen-3-on-elsas-love-anna-kristoff-wedding-movie-to-have-best-storyline

(3) "'Frozen' Snowman Olaf Sings 'In Summer' For Disney Movie", Huffpost. November 13, 2013. https://www.huffpost.com/entry/frozen-snowman-olaf-sings-in-summer-disney-movie_n_4267713

 The Medieval Avengers

Everyone needs a group of superheroes...even the people of the Middle Ages. I present to you the 14 Holy Helpers AKA the Medieval Avengers.

The Fourteen Holy Helpers with the Virgin Mary and Christ, Germany 1509 (1)

Who Were the Fourteen Holy Helpers?

In the middle of the 14th century, Europe went face-to-face with the plague, also named "The Black Death"  which killed over half of the population. Since the Medieval people lacked modern medicine to combat the plague they turned to their faith...and this is how the Fourteen Holy Helpers came to be. The devotion to these 14 saints originally started in Germany, and they were called "Nothelfer," which translates to "helpers in need."As time went on and the plague spread, their devotion spread to other countries. Pope Nicholas V officially declared them by a feast in 1483, sometimes celebrated on August 8th (2). In short, these saints were prayed to by Medieval men and women to aid with numerous health ailments and misfortunes. Each saint had their specific forms of protection (1). 

Although the group members vary, they commonly include: Saints George, Blaise, Erasmus, Pantaleon, Vitus, Christopher, Denis, Cyriacus, Acacius, Eustace, Giles, Margaret, Barbara, and Catherine (2). 

A Closer Look at Some of the Heroes 

Saint George in the manuscript Legenda Aurea killing 
the dragon with the princess kneeling beside him (3)

Saint George

If you have ever seen the flag of England, you have probably seen Saint George and his emblem without even recognizing it. Saint George is England's patron saint and was a fourth-century martyr under emperor Diocletian. He was a soldier in Diocletian's army and refused to sacrifice and arrest Christians as payment to the Roman gods. Diocletian tried to bribe Saint George to no avail, and Saint George was eventually tortured and executed for his rebellious acts (2). On a totally fantastical account of his life in the 13th century, Saint George was renowned for his bravery in defeating a dragon to save a princess from being sacrificed (3). Due to his popularity and his past as a soldier, I would probably deem him the Captain America of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. 

Saint Barbara is depicted by her tower with the 3
windows symbolizing her belief in the Trinity (4)

Saint Barbara

Saint Barbara, thought to be born around the third century, was sadly kept cast away in a tower for most of her life by her rich and jealous father. When her father found out she converted to Christianity, he turned her in to local authorities who then tortured and beheaded her (2). Legend says that her own father did the beheading, however, karma, or herself, quickly took revenge in the form of a strike of lightning killing him shortly after (4). She is the patron saint of fires, lightning storms, fever, and sudden death (3&4). Although a little predictable I would say she most compares to Thor due to her association with lightning. 

Saint Christopher

Saint Christopher as seen in a manuscript done by William Vrelant
in the 1460s (5)

Originally called Reprobus, Saint Christopher was born in the 3rd century and originally devoted his life to a pagan king and Satan. Eventually, he converted to Christianity under a new king's rule. He became most known for carrying people across a violent stream when there was no bridge due to his strength and height. His most famous encounter was when he carried a child who claimed he was Christ, and the child declared he would be named 'Christopher' aka 'Christ-bearer' (2). After this encounter, Christopher was empowered and went home to convert 48,000 men to Christianity. Due to this, he was strapped into an iron chair in the middle of a fire, which he survived, and then endured a storm of arrows being shot at him, which he also survived. He eventually died from a beheading (5). He is prayed to for the bubonic plague, sudden death, danger while traveling, toothaches, hurricanes, and hail (2&5). His strength obviously dubs him as the Hulk of the Fourteen Holy Helpers. 

Saint Margaret

Saint Margaret coming out of the dragon from
the Book of Hours (4)

Saint Margaret was yet another 4th-century martyr executed by emperor Diocletian. She converted to Christianity under the care of her nurse which angered her father and caused him to disown her (at least he didn't behead her like Saint Barbara's story). Later in life, Margaret was tending a flock of sheep when a Roman saw her and wanted her as a wife. When she denied him, he became angry and took her to court where she was ordered to denounce her faith or die. She, of course, refused and was decreed to be boiled and burned alive, but she survived both. Sadly, she could not evade her beheading (2). Based on Medieval legend, Margaret was believed to be swallowed by Satan in dragon form, but she escapes alive bursting out of the dragon's belly after performing the Sign of the Cross (4). She is prayed to for pregnant women, and those suffering from kidney diseases and invoked against devils (4&5). Safe to say Margaret was pretty badass, and for that I will deem her as the Scarlet Witch of the Medieval Avengers. 

The Medieval Avengers vs. Modern-Day Avengers

There is no denying that the Fourteen Holy Helpers and the Avengers have a lot in common. To society, they are groups of heroes that people can embody and look up to, fictional or not. They both enforce on their audiences a way to act and behave. They represent what it is to be brave, chivalric, and kind. In the Medieval Ages, society needed hope that they would survive the plague and so they relied on heroes from Christianity. Now, society needs an escape from its fears of dictatorship, terrorist groups, and advancing technology. Both groups were formed based on the idea of a world that needs saving, and sometimes humans need the dependence of superheroes even if these heroes live in a reality different from their own.

If you are interested here are some Marvel comic books inspired by the Medieval Ages! 

Resources

1. Drieshen, Clarck. "The Holy Helpers." Medieval Manuscripts Blog, British Library, 20 April 2020, https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2020/04/the-holy-helpers.html .

2. Farrow, Mary. "The Fourteen Holy Helpers: Plague Saints for a Time of Coronavirus." The Diocese of Harrisburg, Catholic News Agency, 14 January 2021, https://www.hbgdiocese.org/the-fourteen-holy-helpers-plague-saints-for-a-time-of-coronavirus/.

3. Videen, Hanna. "Soldier Saints (Medieval Avengers #5)." beoshewulf, WordPress, 5 May 2016, https://beoshewulf.wordpress.com/2016/05/05/soldier-saints/.

4. Videen, Hanna. "Wonderwomen (Medieval Avengers #2)." beoshewulf, WordPress, 13 December 2015, https://beoshewulf.wordpress.com/2015/12/13/wonderwomen/.

5. Videen, Hanna. "Don't Lose Your Head (Medieval Avengers #4)." beoshewulf, WordPress, 1 March 2016, https://beoshewulf.wordpress.com/2016/03/01/dont-lose-your-head/.